Swine flu may already be in Michigan and area hospitals are prepared for the virus.

A swine flu case in Livingston County has been identified as “probable,” said Kurt Weiss, a public information officer for the Michigan State Joint Information Center.

Cases are not confirmed until it goes to the Center for Disease Control in Georgia, he said.

There are several other suspected cases across Michigan, said Dr. Robert Graham, medical director of the Mid-Michigan District Health Department.

“Since this story has broken, we have had several people fit the criteria for swine flu,” he said. “They are currently undergoing testing.”

As of Tuesday afternoon, there were 64 reported cases of swine flu in the United States, according to the Center for Disease Control.

Darcie Suderman, public relations director for Central Michigan Community Hospital, said the hospital is prepared for a possible outbreak in mid-Michigan.

“We meet regularly with the local health department and report any suspected cases to health department,” she said. “We also have anti-viral treatments. We are aware that there is a risk.”

The symptoms of swine flu are similar to seasonal flu and include a fever of 100 degrees or greater, sore throat, chills, cough, upset stomach, body aches and headaches.

Testing for the virus is available at CMCH, 1221 South Dr., Suderman said.

Suderman said the best thing people can do to prevent themselves from getting sick is to cover their nose and mouth when coughing and sneezing, avoid touching their eyes and mouth, and wash their hands with soap regularly.

If individuals think they have been exposed, she said, they should stay at home and limit their contact with other people.

According to the Center for Disease Control Web site, “swine flu is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza viruses that causes regular outbreaks in pigs.”

Although people do not normally contract the virus, human infections do happen, although it is not known how easily the virus spreads between people.

In late March, cases of human infections began to appear in Mexico, southern California and Texas.

However, Graham said there is a lot we do not know about the virus.

“The good news is that everybody has recovered or is recovering,” he said. “That may indicate it is a milder virus.”

There have been speculations about deaths in the U.S. related to the virus, and Graham said there have been confirmed deaths in Mexico associated with the virus.

“We don’t know much about those deaths, so we can’t categorize it,” he said. “We’ll know more in probably a week or 10 days.”

metro@cm-life.com

E-mail the author: Lindsay Knake